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Lighting Help Sincerely Requested! PLEASE HELP!!

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  • Member since
    September 2008
  • 18 posts
Lighting Help Sincerely Requested! PLEASE HELP!!
Posted by steverg on Monday, March 9, 2009 4:37 AM
          I am currently scratch building a passenger station canopy and have installed 5 lamp posts on the platform.  Each post has 3 lamps and each lamp has two wires totaling 6 per post.  I am having trouble linking them together.  Can someone PLEASE help?          When I would connect the center bulb of one post with the center bulb of another post, I use a battery to test the connection and it is good.  I would then take the two leads of one end bulb and connect them to the corresponding leads of another bulb on a different post, I get nothing.  Why is this?  I stop there because I know that the remaining bulbs aren’t going to work either.             My Brother In Law told me to take one lead from each bulb of one post and connect them then take the other leads from those bulbs and connect them and attach to the power source…in this case my battery.  I haven’t done so yet; would THAT work?  If that does, it would make sending the leads to a power source that much easier.           Keep in mind that each bulb is only rated for 6v and the instruction stated not to exceed 12v unless preempted by resistors which I do not plan on doing.  I want to simply flip a switch coming from a battery and have all 15 lights turn on perfectly.  If ANYONE out there can understand where I am coming from with this I NEED YOUR HELP PLEASE!!!  I have been befuddled by this predicament for over a week now and I can’t stand the frustration any longer.  I need this to work!!  If you would like to email me directly regarding this, please feel free to do so.  I welcome any electrical knowledge no matter what level.  I have experience in cutting, splicing and soldering wires in the past but this project has me stumped.  Please help me.Thanks, Steve G.  Xncrank@yahoo.com

 

  • Member since
    February 2002
  • From: Reading, PA
  • 30,002 posts
Posted by rrinker on Monday, March 9, 2009 6:46 AM

 You want to wire them all in parallel. Take one lead from each bulb on a post and tie them together. Then tie the other lead from each bulb together. That's per post, you should not have 2 wires, which wneh connected to 6V will light all 3 bulbs on that post. Now repeat for the posts. Tie one lead of each post together. Then tie the other lead from each post together. When you connect this all up to 6V, every light should come on. I'd use some sort of 6V power supply, or even a few volts lower to extend the bulb life. 15 bulbs on batteries won't last very long - the batteries, I mean. 4.5-5 volts would be good, the bulbs wouldn;t be glaringly bright then, and they last a lot longer when the voltage is reduced. Unless they are actually 12 volt bulbs and you're already runnign them ar reduced voltage by using 6V.

                                                     --Randy

 


Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's

 

Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.

  • Member since
    September 2008
  • 18 posts
Posted by steverg on Monday, March 9, 2009 3:21 PM

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly Randy!  On a totally different railroad forum, they suggested the same exact thing where I would take one lead from every bulb and so on and so forth.

Again, thanks for the quick reply and the advice!

Steve

 

  • Member since
    September 2008
  • 18 posts
Posted by steverg on Monday, March 9, 2009 3:21 PM

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly Randy!  On a totally different railroad forum, they suggested the same exact thing where I would take one lead from every bulb and so on and so forth.

Again, thanks for the quick reply and the advice!

Steve

 

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